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This review is very similar to the review that I gave for the Flip Slid HD when it first came out. (Please see that review also...)

I have been a Flip camera user since they released the first gen. Flip Mino HD (not the new metallic model). I loved the camera. For what I needed it for it was everything I wanted. I soon became addicted to the Flip cameras and needed to purchase the newest one every time they came out.

I currently own the Flip Mino HD (1st gen) Flip Ultra HD (2nd Gen) Flip Slide HD, and now the Flip Ultra HD (3rd Gen with Flip Port). I also own a Canon GL2 and Vixia 30 video cameras and a Canon Xi digital SLR.

I got home from school on Tuesday and found my brand new Flip Ultra HD waiting for me. I had about 20 minutes to open the package, look and set up the features (time, date, etc.) before I had to leave for marching band rehearsal. During rehearsal I did some test shooting and I was very impressed with the quality of this camera, but I was worried about a few features.

I was reluctant at first to purchase this camera because of the 60fps feature. I did own a Kodak Zi8 and the 720p 60fps setting didn't not import into Final Cut Pro. I had to take it into compressor or some other software and change the file extension in order for Final Cut Pro to import it. Of course this causes a decrease in quality.

I was also reluctant because of the image stabilization feature. When image stabilization is added to a camera (of this size) video quality usually suffers. I know flips can be very shaky if you do not have a well trained hand. After a few hours a playing you will figure out the right movements that the camera can incorporate so your video will not come out shaky.

I don't use my Flip Slide HD because of the omni directional microphone. I can not record loud situations because the microphone distorts. This is my biggest fault with the Slide HD. I was a little concerned with the new Flip Ultra HD that it would have the same problem even though it uses a different microphone, but what really sold me on this new Flip was the accessories and the FLIP PORT.

Right off the bat I noticed all of the new accessories that they are pushing for the Flips, the aquapacks, the igo chargers, and my favorite is the magnetic Bower Wide Angel Lens. Flip and Cisco have finally started listening to its customers, but what put it over the top for me was Blue Microphones. Blue Microphones makes vintage and out of this world recording, studio, usb microphones. I own one of their USB Microphones called the Snow Ball and the quality of that microphone is amazing. When I found out that Blue Microphones was making a microphone (mikey) for the new Flip to be used with the new Flip Port, I purchased mine right away.

So the Review...

The Ultra HD has always been my favorite because of its size. I think the bigger it is the better control you will have and the less shaky video you will produce. The new Ultra HD is smaller, but not that much. It feels good in your hands. The controls and the screen are in the same place. It is a nice fit in your hand.

I was very shocked at how well the image stabilization worked. If you have used a flip before this one you know that the slightest movement will create shaky video. You can tell that this one has image stabilization. It still can produce shaky video but it might take a big jolt to do it.

The 60 fps was great. It was much clearer video and with the image stabilization it made everything much smoother and clearer in the view finder, even in low light situations. I did check when I got home and the 60fps does import right into Final Cut Pro for editing without any compression. (Probably cause the videos are in MP4 format)

Overall I think this is the best Flip Camera out on the market. I like this one better than the Mino because of the touch screen controls. Sometimes pressing the touch screen controls on the Mino will cause the camera to shake.

I hope this review was helpful. Please feel free to leave comments or questions.

See my comparison of my Flip Cameras below.

Flip Mino HD - Good Microphone (2nd out of all of them), doesn't have as wide as a shooting angle as the Ultra's. Very small in the hand, at times hard to control.

Flip Ultra HD (2nd Gen) - Good Microphone (3rd out of all of them) Wide Angle for shooting, Feels good in the hand, sturdy, wont break if dropped. Double A batteries only last a few hours, rechargeable battery pack has short life span. Unit can get hot when charging - may even shut down.

Flip Slide HD - Poor Microphone (in loud situations) - its omni directional so it picks up all around the Flip not just in the front like the others. (4th out of all of them) Touch controls are better than the Flip Mino, however this has no hard buttons. The Slide does have the largest storage capacity and is second in video quality only to the new Flip Ultra HD.

Flip Ultra HD (3rd Gen Flip Port) - Widest Angle for shooting, feels the best in the hand, has the Best Microphone and currently I believe has the best video quality. This also is the only unit that has the new Flip Port.

Fairly frequently I'll post a video. Some are better than other, depending on the shot I made. The video camera I use is a Flip video. I got it for $75 or $80 a few years ago.They're listed( new) on Amazon now for from $250- almost $400, which is nuts.Cisco discontinued Flip manufacture back when I first heard of it and bought mine. They did it for a good reason: unreliable manufacture. There are many, many stories about people buying the camera only to find it inoperative, having to return it and getting a different camera, sometimes several times until one works.You can imagine how frustrating this would be. I don't have to because it happened to me. I had to return the first Flip I bought to the retailer and got a different camera( same model) in return. That's the one I've used since. It's always charged, always been reliable and does a good job considering it has only digital zoom and not much of one at that.I was so taken with this camera( and its ease of use) that when I saw how the price on it had plummeted with Cisco's announcement I bought two more as back ups for lower prices than the first. I gave one away to a friend, encouraging him to use it to make a music video with his band. The other sat on the shelf until recently when I decided to crank it up and take it out for a spin.You guessed it: It didn't crank. So, imagine you've actually bought one of these that works and it stops. What then? There aren't any authorized repair shops. And you've paid what for it? You spent what on a warranty?After I'd had the Flip for a couple of years I came into possession of a Panasonic point and shoot camera- about the same size as the Flip. It had only a slightly better zoom. The thing is, the settings allowed it to be set to take really mega-pixel photos. This camera retailed two years ago for about $25.The iPhone with the eight-ten megapixel camera takes better pictures and video than the Flip. The little Panasonic takes better pictures. But now Amazon is selling the Flip for as much as an iPhone must cost, so be warned.$250 buys a lot of camera these days. Don't blow it on a Flip. The sound recording is, I have to say here, great. The Flip licks up everything. The camera operator has to be very careful to keep quiet while recording.I hope the one I gave away worked for the friend.

Worked for just 7 months. Even from the beginning it didn't go well. We record kids' music lessons with this, usually one hour per lesson. There was once we recorded a lesson, and when we came home, the file was nowhere to be found on the video camera, after we searched every which way. We knew it was there because it took up 3.5 GB of space, yet the file couldn't be found in any location. Then recently this happened again, another one-hour recording couldn't be found but took up another 3.5 GB of space. So now we have a video camera with no free space to recording; and two files worth of 7 GB can't be located.

Bought this camera to replace mine that had worn out. I had no problem buying a used item that would have superficial damage or markings from having been the property of a library, but it was a totally different matter finding that the darn thing didn't work. It would turn on for a moment, then turn itself off within a couple of seconds of beginning to record. Replacing the batteries didn't do anything, as the first time I tried to use it it would say it needed new batteries even though I had put them in straight out of the package. Incredibly disappointed, as there was no way for me to get a working item in time for my trip. Moral of the story: be wary of buying a used Flip camera, as it looks like they don't hold up well. My old one lasted for years, but it was used by only me. You can't know how much a secondhand camera was used or in this case, probably abused.